Last night we couldn’t decide where to go to church, one was too far, another had a guest preacher, and the other didn’t feel right – not yet. To make a decision felt forced and phony, going to church should not be a duty. So finally, I said “You know, we don’t HAVE to go to church, we can play hooky.”

So, like any good hooky player, I slept in…late: ‘Why get up? What for?’ Without church, I was fitfully slumbering full of guilt, waking with a nagging passive-aggressive mood. Not pretty. Not a good start to a day of worship.

Richard finally came in and said, “Get up! Let’s go down to the Broadmoor. We can have a nice lunch, walk some, browse some, and write some.” That was all the encouragement I needed to hear. An hour later we were on the road enjoying a beautiful day and a Sunday drive to Colorado Springs.

We have always considered going to the Broadmoor as a ‘day-vacation’; which means, we’re going to act like tourists, guests of the resort and wander around like we belong, enjoying the sights, the quiet and an opportunity to pretend we are someplace special (which we are). Here we find quiet corners and walks, many chances to rest and renew.

Richard and I enjoy encounters with people, he is such a people-person and can (and does) start conversations with anyone who is game. I tend to hang back, listening and observing until the right moment to join. We make the rounds of the stores we like to wander and while in the Hayden Hays Gallery we meet one of the best gallery attendants we have yet to meet. Jamie Oberloh an affable and knowledge young man easily became like a third person in our group. He was more of an art friend, a comfortable connoisseur of culture, a loveable learned professor wise beyond his years. It was such a pleasure to experience the art with him as a member of our little party. We walked around the gallery and he pointed out details, stylizations, background, emotions, textures, framing techniques and insights that would have been missed if we didn’t take the time to engage in this impromptu Art Appreciation 101. Obviously, he loves art, artists, and others who love the arts. His passion of art was infectious and we considered it an honor that he spent time with us.

OK, so our time at the Broadmoor wasn’t a religious experience like going to church. But was it spiritual? One could argue that maybe it was. I have to believe that when we reach out and touch the lives of those we meet, that we in all our humanness might achieve a God-like quality of love that appreciates, validates, and encourages others to ponder the meaning of the experience. And in doing so, a kind of unity on a level that is more attune to personal introspection leading to meaning, just might equate to a higher-level experience. Maybe it is innate spirituality when we reach out in love to others; maybe it pleases, honors and glorifies God. Maybe a day of hooky can be another way of saying ‘Sabbath.’